Jessica Mindich Explained

Jessica Mindich is a former lawyer[1] and the founder and CEO of the Caliber Collection[2] (FKA Jewelry for a Cause),[3] [4] which takes guns off streets and transforms them with bullet casings into jewelry and nonprofit donations.[5]

Caliber Collection

The Caliber Collection began in January 2012 in collaboration with the Mayor of Newark, NJ, Cory Booker, as a way to turn illegal and unwanted guns into jewelry. 20% of the net proceeds are to fund voluntary gun buyback and amnesty programs.[6] Since then, Caliber has partnered additionally with San Francisco, Detroit, Hartford, and most recently North Miami Beach.[7] To date, the programs have taken 2,500 illegal guns off the streets of those cities and has raised over $165,000 for police departments.[8] [9]

Gun Buyback and Amnesty Programs

In 2013, Jessica Mindich was able to present the Mayor Booker of Newark, NJ with a check for $40,000, as a result of nine weeks of sales, to fund her first gun buyback and amnesty program in Newark, NJ.[10] [11] A second buyback was funded in Newark by Mindich's company in 2014 and collected 185 guns ranging from sniper rifles to assault weapons.[12]

In 2016, Mindich donated $25,000 to the Wayne County Sheriff's Office in Michigan to buyback 500 guns.[13]

Caliber Foundation

The Caliber Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) organization that supports victims and communities affected by illegal gun violence.[8]

Notable Contributors

In 2014, Serena Williams and the Serena Williams Fund announced a grant to the Caliber Foundation to prevent young people from experiencing the same pain Williams' had through the murder of her sister in 2003.[14]

In 2016, street artist Shepard Fairey donated 20% of sales from his art exhibit at the Library Street Collective in Detroit, MI.[15] In July 2016, Fairey also dedicated a portion of the proceeds of the sale from his gun control American Civics collaboration with photographer Jim Marshall to the Caliber Foundation.

Raise The Caliber

Mindich is also the founder of the Raise The Caliber initiative, a national advocacy campaign to end illegal gun violence. Proceeds from partnerships under Raise The Caliber are donated to the Caliber Foundation.[16]

Journalism

In 2016, Mindich became a frequent Huffington Post journalist creating a series of interviews under the title YOU CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. Interviews included men and women who are leaders, activists and influencers on the subject of gun violence in America.[17]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 51% Show #1373. Allison. Dunne. www.wamc.org. 13 November 2015.
  2. Web site: Get $50 for a gun at Detroit buy-back that makes bracelets out of bullets. June 10, 2016. mlive.
  3. Web site: The Top 4 Jewelry Companies That Give Back. A. J.. Agrawal. ContributorGrowth. Marketer. August 21, 2015. HuffPost.
  4. News: Nelson . Rebecca . Jewelry Designer Jessica Mindich: Fighting Gun Violence With Bracelets | TIME.com . Style.time.com . 2013-01-29 . 2015-08-12.
  5. Web site: Fighting Crime With Jewelry. Nicole. Gull. May 7, 2012. Inc.com.
  6. Web site: We Need to Talk to People We Disagree With About Fighting Gun Violence says Interview No. 7 Anel Lopez Gorham by Jessica Mindich. illegal guns in some of the toughest cities in. America. March 15, 2016. HuffPost.
  7. Web site: North Miami Beach to work with firm to turn guns into baubles Miami Herald. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160528125056/http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/north-miami/article80356562.html. 2016-05-28. Miami Herald.
  8. Web site: Calibercollection.com. www.calibercollection.com.
  9. Web site: Chris Murphy: Stop Blaming Gun-Violence on Mental Illness, America is Awash in Guns. HuffPost. March 2017.
  10. Caliber Collection fashions jewelry to take guns off the streets. February 11, 2013. Christian Science Monitor.
  11. Web site: Newark Mayor Cory Booker backs gun-awareness jewelry line made from confiscated guns and crime-scene bullet casings. Carol. Kuruvilla. nydailynews.com.
  12. Web site: Newark gun buyback program to turn weapons into jewelry. Naomi Nix | NJ Advance Media for. NJ.com. February 15, 2014. nj.
  13. Web site: The Gun Report: March 21, 2014. March 21, 2014.
  14. Web site: The Serena Williams Fund Partners With The Caliber Foundation To End Illegal Gun Violence In America. The Caliber. Foundation. www.prnewswire.com.
  15. Web site: Shepard Fairey donating Detroit art sales to gun buyback. Mark. Stryker. Detroit Free Press.
  16. Web site: 'Murder is My Beat, Sadly I Make a Living From It.' Meet LAPD Detective John Skaggs. illegal guns in some of the toughest cities in. America. April 8, 2016. HuffPost.
  17. Web site: Filmmaker Abigail Disney advises 'When a film relies on violence for entertainment, walk out.' Interview No. 12. illegal guns in some of the toughest cities in. America. April 15, 2016. HuffPost.